Fourth Annual Legal Reform Summit a Success
Dr. Richard E. Anderson, chairman of the Board of The Doctors Company, participated in the Fourth Annual Legal Reform Summit on September 22, 2003. The Summit, a full, one-day conference, was held at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce offices in Washington, D.C.
The Summit opened with a buffet breakfast and concluded with a late afternoon networking reception. After welcoming remarks by Lisa Rickard, president of the U.S. Chamber’s Institute for Legal Reform, discussion focused on what legal reform means to American business and consumers with Jeffrey C. Crowe, chairman & CEO of Landstar System, Inc., a nationwide Florida-based company.
Stan Anderson, executive vice president and chief legal officer for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, moderated the late morning panel. Sherman “Tiger” Joyce focused on 2003 state legislative legal reform initiatives. Texas Representative Joe Nixon, author of the recently signed comprehensive legal reform law that included medical liability reform, discussed its history and the impact of his legislative proposal on the Texas legal system and its medical malpractice crisis. The final morning presentation was by Walter Olson, who is senior fellow at the Manhattan Institute’s Center for Legal Policy. Described by numerous journalists as “perhaps America’s leading authority on over-litigation,” Walter Olson focused on trial bar tactics and techniques in jackpot justice awards.
Emmy Award–winning journalist and Court TV anchor Catherine Crier treated Summit participants to a keynote luncheon address. Sam Skinner, who is the retired chairman and chief executive officer of USF Corporation and current chairman of the Board of the Institute for Legal Reform, served as the introducer and moderator for Catherine Crier.
As part of the luncheon program and in keeping with the tradition of presenting Legal Reform Awards at the annual Summit, U.S. Chamber President and Chief Executive Officer Thomas J. Donohue presented awards in three of the five categories.
The Organization Award went to the West Virginia Chamber of Commerce and the West Virginia State Medical Association for providing invaluable leadership in persuading state lawmakers to pass meaningful legal reform that prevents venue jurisdiction shopping and encourages meaningful medical liability reform in West Virginia.
The 2003 Research Award was given to the RAND Institute for Civil Justice for their 2003 study on the costs of asbestos litigation, which has been widely recognized as a key instrument in influencing Congress to consider national reform.
The Federal Legislative Award for 2003 was given to United States Senator Orin G. Hatch of Utah. Senator Hatch was recognized for his role as chairman of the Senate’s Judiciary Committee in pushing class action and asbestos litigation reforms through his policy committee.
After introduction and complimentary remarks on The Doctors Company by U.S. Chamber President Tom Donohue, Dr. Richard Anderson presented the 2003 Individual Achievement Award to Walter Olson of the Manhattan Institute. Walter Olson was recognized for his books and articles that illustrate the need for legal reform and for this work as editor of Overlawyered.com, a Web site that chronicles the high cost of our legal system.
Dr. Anderson presented the State Legislative Award for 2003 to Texas Representative Joe Nixon, who stood up to tremendous pressure from the plaintiffs’ trial lawyers and endured 80 hours of debate on his reform measure House Bill 4 (with a record-setting 158 recorded votes and 622 pages of amendments), to help bring fairness and balance to the Texas tort system. Although unable to attend, Colorado House Representative Tambor Williams was given the 2003 State Legislative Award. In the 2003 Colorado State Legislature’s session, she wrote House Bill 1007, which clarified a Colorado Supreme Court decision that had the effect of removing the cap on noneconomic damages under Colorado’s 1986 medical liability reform statutes.
The afternoon session commenced with an hour-long presentation on health care liability reform. Dr. Anderson made the case for California’s MICRA at the state level. He was joined by the president of the American Medical Association, Dr. Donald J. Palmisano, who made the case for effective reform at the national level and what it means to the cost of health care. Philip K. Howard, founder and chairman of Common Good, who moderated a lively question-and-answer period, introduced the panelists.
Summit attendees heard an update on federal legislative efforts to enact legal reform from asbestos to class action by United States Senator Charles E. Grassley of Iowa, who is the chairman of the Senate’s Finance Committee. United States Congressman Tom Cole of Oklahoma moderated the final presentation of the day. A.P. Carlton, who is immediate past president of the American Bar Association, was joined by Philip K. Howard of Covington and Burling, who filled in for former Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives Newt Gingrich, who fell ill at the last moment, to debate the pros and cons of selecting state judges either by appointment or by election.
The attendees represented all sectors of our nation’s economy, legal reform groups, the public sector, and legal and medical communities. They expressed their appreciation for the opportunity to focus on the economic impact of America’s flawed legal system on business, health care professionals, shareholders, and consumers.
You can view a Web cast of the 2003 Legal Reform Summit by visiting the U.S. Chamber’s Web site.